The inner workings of your home – the framing, wiring, plumbing, and fastening – are intricate and essential. But most people don’t give them a thought, as drywall buries it. Understandably, most clients are finish-oriented. But what you see at the end of the project is only eye candy.
Do we really care about what lies underneath?
The bones in your body hold you erect and organized. Your circulatory system supports the flow of oxygen and nutrients.
Similarly, the mechanical systems of your home maintain structural integrity.
I often stop at ongoing jobs to see what the competition is up to. I can tell right away if capable subs are managing a project efficiently. Quality and professionalism show immediately from the beginning to the end of the construction process. Yes, the framing, wiring, plumbing, and fastening will get covered up … but there is no hiding sloppy workmanship or a messy workplace.
Take plumbing, for example. It takes years to learn pipefitting as a trade and craft – after all, a leak could ruin a house.
Copper used to be the key material but we don’t use as much of it in residential plumbing these days. Plastic products with compression fittings are now code-approved.
It is used in roofing and flashing applications. Also, you find copper in the elegant, steam-punky fittings of condensing boilers and radiant heat manifolds. Their clean layouts of valves, supplies, and returns are both artistic and functional.
The appeal of copper as a decorative feature is popular too. Observing the way the rain and atmosphere transform its surface to subtle browns and greens is poetry in action.
To the average eye, the finely finished trim detail is impressive. The finished floors shine with lacquered gloss.
But to my eye – from the hole in the ground to the hardware to the last painter’s brushstroke –
each element of the home is integral and beautiful
And, like the intelligence of the human body, the mechanical systems nurture an essential pulse of life: you and your family!
Healthy and Happy at Home.
